If you are in the market to buy anything, if you have any sense, you will shop around to see where you will get the best value, right?  The advertizing media bombards us with “NEW!! (you fill in the blank).  New electronic gadgets, new cars, new technology, new beliefs, new revelation about religions, you name it.  And they tell you that you absolutely must have whatever it is they are selling.  That quest for the best deal leads us from place to place to compare.  So it doesn’t surprise me when someone hawking their wares says theirs is different, better, and there’s nothing else like it.  There is always someone claiming to have invented, or done something that has never been done before.  But what does the Holy Bible say?  It is written in Ecclesiastes 1:9, The thing that hath been, it is that which shall be; and that which is done is that which shall be done: and there is no new thing under the sun.
   To that verse I would have to pose the honest question: Why haven’t we found any fossilized computers or cars?  Why haven’t we found any 2000 year old space shuttle pieces, or at least the blueprints for one on the Pyramids?  I don’t remember space travel when I was a child, except in comic books.  So how can the Bible say there’s nothing new under the sun?  As the title says, I’m daring to compare what exists now to what existed way back then, and I have a lot of questions of what, how, and why. 
    But yet, I don’t always find the answers to every question.  Believe it or not, there are things you can’t find on the internet on Yahoo or Google.  There are secrets of the universe that man has not discovered yet, and may never discover, but there is One who has the answers we seek.  And He should know them, because He was there when those things happened.  Of course, by now you realize I’m talking about the Lord God.  Why did God inspire King Solomon to write there is nothing new under the sun?  Well, I guess that’s because He’s been watching us do the same stuff over and over since the beginning of mankind.  For example, where did the idea for powered flight originate?  We see drawings that Leonardo DaVinci made hundreds of years ago.  Where did he get the idea?  It has been in mankind’s mind to invent a way to fly since God only knows when, and it’s nothing new.  The technology we have today is new to us, but the Word tells us it really isn’t new at all.  The ideas have been out there for ages, and every day someone discovers, or rather, re-discovers how to make them a physical reality.  If God says there is nothing new under the sun, then that settles it, there is nothing new under the sun, because He is the only one who is in the position to say so.  Some things we just have to accept by faith, without having seen the evidence of it first.
    Actually, that’s how most of the Bible operates.  We have to believe before we see, and that’s where our problems begin.  Yet, somehow, we have no problem sticking coins in a soda machine to receive a can of pop that we haven’t seen yet.  As little a thing as that is, it is a perfect example of “faith”.  We put the money in the machine, in the trusting belief that when we push the button, our can of soda will come out.  And we aren’t surprised when it comes out, are we?  No, because that’s how it’s supposed to work.
    We may have seen or heard of others using the machine to get soda, so we try it and it works.  So we soon settle that area of “faith” in our life, to the point if we are thirsty, we will with unswerving trust put our coins in any soda machine we happen to be in front of, even though we may never have ever seen or used that particular machine before.  If it doesn’t come out, then we start pounding the machine and hitting the coin return.  There’s certainly nothing new under the sun with that one, is there?
    Much, if not all we come to believe and trust comes from what we have learned from others.  Back in the 1800’s people were rushing out West to find gold, because they had heard others had struck it rich out there.  They had faith that if they could just get out West, fame and fortune would be theirs.  But not all got rich, in fact, not all even made it all the way out there, some died before ever getting to their destination.  News of obstacles along the way didn’t deter people from heading West.  They dared to compare the lives they were living to their dreams, and were moved to go for the dream, whatever the cost.  Thus, they wrote “California or Bust” on their wagons.  And some indeed did bust.  It was normally the ones who, when faced with the difficulty of the journey, had not first counted the cost, and found it was harder than they had anticipated, and quit.  They gave up on their dream and settled where they stopped striving.  Now, I’m going somewhere with this, stay with me.  People back then were a lot tougher than today, and they were used to hardship, yet even some of them gave up and quit.  How can we expect things to be different today?  after all, there is nothing new under the sun.
    Being I am engaged in the ministry of healing, people from all over the world contact me about how they can be healed of whatever they are suffering from.  Some of them are genuinely sick and tired of being sick and tired, and are ready to do whatever it takes to be well.  Some would like to be well, only if it doesn’t take any effort on their part.  They want me or someone else to do all their work for them.  And some keep doing what isn’t working and somehow expect different results.  One thing I have learned through the years, and that is, history repeats itself, just like it says in the Bible; that which has been is that which will be, that which has been done is that which will be done.
   But I see HOPE in that verse, because it is written in Hebrews 13:8, Jesus Christ the same, yesterday, and to day, and for ever.  That same Jesus Christ who healed all the sick who came to Him some 2000 years ago is still healing all who will come to Him today, on the same terms He healed them back then.  They must believe.  Nothing new under the sun here!  God is doing the same thing today He has always done for those who seek Him.  He hasn’t come up with some new requirement, or a membership in some exclusive church, or with any new doctrine.  That which has been is that which will be.  I’ve never heard truer words to describe God or His works.
   Dare to compare the situation you are presently in with what the Bible says.  I know you’ve already been shopping around, trying every “new thing” under the sun, and it hasn’t worked, has it?  Lasting joy and satisfaction is not in that new car or the latest gadget.  Healing is not in the latest drug they’re advertizing on TV.  Why not go to the One who never changes, who never fails to deliver on His Word.
   God’s Word is full of promises for those who will believe.  But don’t expect the devil to just roll over and leave you alone once you decide to believe.  You see, the devil doesn’t change either.  He’s bad to the bone, and he isn’t about to change.  He has always opposed mankind and anything that God loves, he hates.  If your situation is not where you want to be, and you’re ready for a change, daring to compare is one of the smartest moves you’ll ever make.  But be advised, it will be just like in the gold rush days, it may be harder than it looks, and if you don’t count the cost first, you may give up and quit when the going gets tough.  I’m telling you this because when you dare to compare, you always will look at every side of the issue.  Everyone wants to be blessed, but nobody wants to hear about the opposition they will face in order to walk in those blessings.  That’s not to say you can’t succeed, for in the not-so-small print the Bible also says in 1 John 4:4; Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world.
   What exactly does that mean?  That means no matter how tough the going gets, the grace and strength that God gives you is abundantly above anything the devil can throw at you.  Dare to compare:  it pays to do that when looking at the things of God, for in reality, there is no comparison at all.  I would liken it to you being in a Sherman Tank and the devil being outside shooting his spit-wads at you.  Oh, you will have to listen to the “splat, splat, splat” as they hit your tank, but are they doing any damage?  Naaaaaa!  Compared to the blessings you will enjoy as a child of God, the trials the devil will hit you with are nothing worse than sand in your sneakers when you’re walking the beach.
   As it is written, there is nothing new under the sun.  The devil is the same yesterday, today and as long as God allows him to exist, which won’t be for much longer.  But Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, to day, and for ever.  So compare who will be in business the longest.  Yep, that’s right, God will be around forever, and He will spend all eternity showering you with His love, and the devil will be nowhere in sight.  It is written in Ephesians 2:7; That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus.
   I’ve dared to compare, and found that serving God is the bargain of all time.  I’m sure after you’ve done your homework, you’ll agree!  Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits; who forgiveth all thine iniquities; who healeth all thy diseases. (Ps 103:2-3)  Remember, we’re looking for benefits here, that’s why we dare to compare in the first place!